Almaty: India’s premier woman sprinter Dutee Chand on Saturday scripted history after qualifying in the 100 metres category for the forthcoming Rio Olympics.
In a scintillating run in the women’s 100m heats of the 26th G. Kosanov memorial meet here, Dutee clocked 11.30 seconds, thereby creating a new national record and qualifying for the Rio Games. The qualifying mark for Rio was set at 11.32 seconds.
Dutee, after her qualification, vowed to perform even better and not let anyone down in the Olympics.
“I am really happy at the moment. It has been a tough year for me and I am so happy that my coach Ramesh sir’s and my hard work has paid off,” Dutee said.
“I would like to thank all the people in India who were praying for me to qualify. Your wishes have paid off. I would like to thank Anglian medal hunt, Pullela Gopichand Academy and KIIT university for the all their support. I will not let anyone down at the Olympics”, she added.
In 2014, Dutee was pulled out from the Commonwealth Games squad and was suspended due to having a higher level of testosterone than was permissible in a woman athlete, according to the IAAF hyperandrogenism laws.
She was brave enough to fight this ban and in 2015, in a historical verdict, the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) ruled in her favour thereby allowing her to compete again.
Despite this turmoil and the fact that she lost an entire year of training, that she has gone on to qualify for the Olympics speaks volumes of her fighting spirit and character.
In Tokyo, Japanese hammer thrower Koji Murofushi, who won Olympic gold in Athens 12 years ago and bronze in London four years ago, has come up short in his bid to compete at a fifth Games in Rio de Janeiro in August.
The 41-year-old, who also won the world title in Daegu in 2011, came out of a two-year retirement to make his bid but failed to meet the qualifying mark of 77 metres while finishing 12th at the Japan national championships.
“The result was 64 metres but it came from me giving my best. My preparation period was short but I also feel (I have reached) my physical limit,” Murofushi told the Kyodo News agency.
“I feel it was good to compete in these championships again after a while out but I’d like to wish my best for the fellow throwers from now on.
“I think my physical limitations will make it difficult for me to aim for the very top, like winning medals in the Olympics and the world championships.
